


Rushing Water

by VenomQuill



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Suicidal Thoughts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-05
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-09-12 08:23:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16869508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VenomQuill/pseuds/VenomQuill
Summary: "I was looking for cools swords when I saw her there. She looked pretty... um... contemplative."





	Rushing Water

**Author's Note:**

> Find it on dA: ["Rushing Water"](http://fav.me/dctpk5t)

Water rushed down a waterfall and swirled into the deep area. Trash swirled in the dingy water and collected in piles scattered throughout the wide area. Water rushed through a water-worn opening in the wall and fell into an abyss.

_Srwooosh. Splash. Shrwooosh._

A yellow reptilian monster stood at the precipice. She watched through round glasses as water swirled around her long, clawed feet and tugged at her lab coat, urging her to follow the current down, down, down into the black. Her clawed fingers fidgeted as she stared.

_“Zzzxxxxxxrrrrrr! Kkksssszzzzk!” “Rawrf… raaawr… hmmm… hiiiiim… hiiimmmm…” “sn… o… wy…” “BUT NOBODY CAME.” “Sibyin, revbit. Chynkr,a wrehl.aein?g?”_

The reptile winced, bowing her triangular head as her regrets and sins weighed heavy on her. They weighed so heavily, she was afraid that at any moment her SOUL would shatter into pieces and she would be no more. But that wouldn’t happen. Scarring was common on SOULs of monsters who’ve been through traumatic events or who have gained LOVE, but there was never any recorded death by regret.

There was never any recorded death by regret.

As she stared down into the abyss, her balance wavering, her mind choking and starting and buzzing, she didn’t hear the clink of boots on metal or the hearty _splash_ of another body hopping into the water nearby.

Suddenly, a voice spoke up. “So… where do you think it goes?”

Alphys yelped and her head swiveled up. Her yellow, scaly face gained a reddish tinge to it. Standing beside her, perhaps double her height, was another woman. She bared a mouthful of razor teeth in a gentle smile and she looked down at her with one bright yellow, slit-pupil eye. Despite the water that swirled around her booted feet and that ran down her deep blue scales, she seemed perfectly relaxed. Well, she was a fish monster, so she was probably much more at home in the water than the reptilian fire native.

After a few moments, Alphys realized she hadn’t answered her question. “Uh-uh! Um… w-well,” she stammered and looked down again. “Th-th-there are many theories. O-o-one of the more popular ones is th-that it’s d-drops into the ocean. But it’s s-s-so far down, it might even be the b-bottom of the ocean!”

“Really?” The fish monster stood beside her, noticeably more interested. “So, you think that might be some sort of way to the surface?”

“S-surface? W-w-well, probably not,” Alphys admitted. “B-but it’s probably just as good a way out of the Underground. No one really knows where it goes. It could go on f-forever. Any t-trash that falls down is never seen again. O-one might say that a-anything that goes down will never be s-seen again. M-maybe it leads to the b-bottom of the ocean. Or maybe it’s a w-worm hole to some different d-dimension. Or m-maybe it leads to nowhere at all.”

“That’s so cool!” the fish monster laughed. “But, uh, if that really leads to another dimension, maybe we should take another step back, huh?”

Alphys didn’t answer immediately. She stared down the abyss. Maybe it did lead to another world. Or… maybe it led to nowhere at all. Maybe it was better that useless trash fell down there where no one would have to pick over it or hurt themselves on it.

“All the trash that comes down here is useful!” The fish monster pointed out.

Alphys jumped and looked up. “H-huh?” _Had she spoken aloud?_

“Yeah! I mean, I find really cool swords and stuff down here all the time. My neighbor finds CDs and posters. Heh. I even saw someone running off with an old plastic bag.” The fish monster flashed another smile and held out her webbed hand. “So, how about we talk more about this over here?” She jabbed her thumb back to a piece of wood that clung to a trash pile some ways away. It was far enough away to where neither could slip, but close enough to see it.

Alphys looked up at her and then her hand. She took a deep breath and took her hand. She allowed herself to be guided to the driftwood and sat down next to the woman, curling her golden tail up beside herself. From then on, the two talked about the dump and the abyss and all the theories they’d heard regarding it. The woman listened to Alphys with rapt attention. Although she was loud and boisterous and sometimes punched the air or rocked their piece of driftwood, Alphys… found herself enjoying the normally overwhelming social situation.

Then, the woman stood up. “Ah, I have to be getting back to work. Hey! You need a lift back home?”

Alphys blinked. “H-home? Oh! R-right! Yeah, I h-have to get back home.” _They’re hungry, aren’t they?_ “Um… s-sure! Thanks, um…”

“Undyne!” The woman held out her hand. “Captain of the Royal Guard!”

Alphys took her hand. “A-Alphys. I’m the Royal Scientist.”

“Royal Scientist? Cool! You must live in Hotland then, huh?”

Alphys nodded. “Y-yeah! It’s kind of a long way back, though. I don’t want to…”

“Ah, nonsense! I need the run. Want to go?”

Alphys hesitated and bared her long teeth in a shy grin. “O-okay. Thank you, Un–oof!” Undyne plucked Alphys out of the water and held her under her arm. Water dripped from the scientist’s lab coat as she was held above the water level.

“Keep a hold of your glasses!”

“O-oh! M-my glasses are specially m-made,” Alphys informed her. “Th-they’re m-magnetically attached s-so they can’t fall off. It’s really useful because I-I don’t have ears to clip them b-behind like some o-other monsters, you know.”

“Neat! Well, let’s put that to the test, huh?” Undyne grinned and slipped into a runner’s stance.

“T-test?”

Undyne sped off, her long legs making even longer jumps and strides as she ran out of the dump and darted through the quiet boggy tunnels. Alphys squealed and held onto Undyne’s arm. Yet, despite going faster than she’d ever gone–outside of some particularly zealous elevator rides–she didn’t feel fear. Undyne kept a hold of her, and something about that made Alphys feel safe.

Undyne crossed the bridge spanning from the end of Waterfall to the beginning of Hotland in two bounds. She landed squarely in the area between Alphys’ lab, the elevators, and the Riverperson’s dock. After a short skid that threw up dust and stone, Undyne laughed and stood up straight. “Ten seconds flat! You okay?”

Alphys snorted and let out a wheezing laugh. “W-we made it! Y-y-you didn’t drop me! How?”

“I’d never let you down, Alphys.” Undyne chuckled and set her down.

“A-are you okay?” Alphys asked suddenly, noting the sweat that peppered Undyne’s otherwise drying scales.

Undyne waved her hand with a _pssh._ “Aw, I’m fine. It’s just pretty hot in here, you know? Heh. Well, that was fun! I hope we run into each other again, Alphys.”

Alphys smiled, this time baring more teeth and relaxing. “I-I hope so, too. Goodbye, Undyne!” She watched as Undyne turned and ran off, crossing the bridge across the pit of lava with speed and grace that Alphys had no idea could have existed. The scientist turned around and walked up to her lab. The door automatically opened. Her faint smile left. No… no she couldn’t… all she did was mess things up! She couldn’t go back. Not now, not after what she’d done to them. She hurt people, she was worthless, she–

_“I hope we run into each other again, Alphys.”_

Alphys took a deep breath and set her gaze. Someone… someone was looking out for her. If a really cool stranger could care so deeply for what some nerdy loser like her was saying… then she had hope. She had someone who wanted to meet her again, who wanted her _alive._ So, Alphys would just have to find a way to deal with her problems. For their sake… and for her own.

**Author's Note:**

> This was actually inspired by ["UNDERTALE ANNIVERSARY - ANIMATED"](https://youtu.be/mQRboZwDrOI). I love Alphys and Undyne (who happens to be my favorite character, like, honestly) and it occurred to me that I haven't done much with them! So, I seek to remedy that.
> 
> By remedy that, I mean to write a short story about a suicidal lizard and fish hero. Haha
> 
> Also, in case you get confused or whatever, the italicized conversation at the beginning are the amalgamates in this order: Memory Head, Endogeny, Crystal (Snowy's Mother), Lemon Bread, and Reaper Bird.
> 
> CRAP I ACCIDENTALLY PUBLISHED THIS. THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO GO UP TOMORROW _Uuuuuuuuugh_


End file.
